I really liked this author’s MC books so I decided to give another series she is writing a try. This book is the first in the Scarred Souls series, and it is about a man who was brainwashed, conditioned, and tortured in order to create the perfect fighter. Stripped of his name and given a number, 818’s life consisted of only pain and anger. He is made to fight in cage matches to the death and the only thing that keeps him going is his need for revenge. He gains his freedom and then immediately sets out to have his vengeance.

Enter the h, Kisa. She is the daughter of the head of the Bratva. She is being forced to marry an evil, sick man and she also is made to manage her father’s brutal death match fights. She is constantly watched and monitored, church being the only place she can go for refuge, and it is during a trip there that she meets 818, who now goes by the name Raze. He is homeless. living on the street, and doesn’t speak, but she feels an immediate attraction to him.

I had never felt this before. Never felt this overwhelming lust, this consuming level of instant attraction… this raw and insatiable need to be with a man. It was dangerous. It was haunting. It was forbidden. And although it was wrong, it felt so perfectly right.

Time passes, and she sees him again, but now at the cage match where he fills in an open spot. Her interest in him deepens and her and Raze begin a relationship that could prove to be fatal for them.

This book was AWESOME! I looked the dark themes, the bloody fights, and the mystery surrounding Raze. The relationship between Kisa and Raze was swoon-worthy and I loved reading the parts where they interacted. I liked how he was so gentle with her but at the same time a stone-cold killer in the ring.

Ms. Cole is a very talented author and I hope she has many more of these books to come.